SUN - VOCABULARY

Sunspots – regions of strong magnetic activity. Sunspots are cooler than the rest of the photosphere and appear as dark splotches on the Sun. They seem to move across the Sun as the Sun rotates. The number of sunspots changes over time. They follow a cycle, peaking in number every 11 years. An average sunspot is about the size of Earth.

•Prominence – clouds of gas that make loops and jets that extend into the corona from the photosphere. They sometimes last for weeks.

Flares – sudden increases in brightness that often occur near sunspots or prominences. They are violent eruptions that last from minutes to hours.

Suns Layers Corona – suns outermost

atmosphere Chromosphere – thin layer

below Corona Photosphere – 1st visible part

of sun Convective region – area

where gasses circulate Radiative zone – thickest

layer Core – suns energy produced

by nuclear fusion

Shadows

Umbra The central,

darker part of the shadow where light is totally blocked.

Penumbra The lighter

part of the shadow where light is partially blocked.

Solar Eclipse – When the moons shadow appears on Earth.

The moon is between the Earth and the Sun.

Can be partial or total – depends on whether you are in the path of the Umbra or the Penumbra.

Total eclipses only occur when you are in the Umbra.

Lunar Eclipse – Occurs when the Moon moves into the Earth’s shadow.

Earth is between the Sun and the Moon.

A lunar Eclipse can occur only during a full Moon.

Unlike solar eclipses – lunar eclipses can be seen from anywhere on Earth where it’s nighttime.

Tides